Lowell “Luke” Kasten, 88, Delavan, died March 21, 2016, at Lakeland Health Care Center, Elkhorn.
He was born in Freeport, Ill., Jan. 31, 1928, to the late LeeRoy and Mabel (Huber) Kasten. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and returned to the Midwest to study dairy technology at the University of Wisconsin. He worked for his father, an owner of the Superior Dairy in Freeport, until 1951, and later worked in sales for Brown and Bigelow, of Minneapolis, Howell Tractor and Equipment Co. of Rockford, Ill., and Pittsburg Des Moines Steel in Iowa.
Luke was an avid outdoorsman, who loved hunting and fishing and took numerous hunting trips with his good friends to Canada. He loved people and was skilled at remembering their names and their stories. He had a wonderful sense of humor, sharing jokes with others his entire life from a seemingly endless list that he knew by heart.
After retiring, he enjoyed splitting his time between Delray Beach, Fla., and Delavan, with Jean Meier Kasten, his wife of 32 years.
Survivors include his wife; sons, Daniel (Susan) Kasten, Rockford, Ill., Jon (Vickie) Kasten, German Valley, Ill.; granddaughters, Lani Kasten, Hanna Kasten; sister, Rita (Jim) Mitchell; son-in-law, Peter Robinson; stepchildren, Nancy (Gary) Krieger, Cedarburg, Cathy (Kevin) Coghlan, Stillwater, Minn., Todd Meier, Madison, Lori (Mike) Grover, Delavan; grandchildren, Catilyn (Mike) Patek, Matt Krieger, Greg Krieger, Ryan, Erin, Kyle Coghlan, Kelly (Conor) Schultz, Lydia Meier, Alex, Max and Sam Grover; many nieces, nephews, and cousins.
He was further preceded in death by his beloved daughter, Lisabeth ‘Beth’ Robinson, and a sister, Janet Dumroese.
A Memorial service is being planned for a later date. Monroe Funeral Home, Delavan, is serving the family.
